The present disclosure relates, in general, to an apparatus for viewing and inspecting a surface area of a three dimensional object, such as a cylinder, square or elliptical wire or cable having an insulative coating or polymeric outer layer. Even more particularly, the present disclosure relates to a hand-held probe, employing a miniature video camera and a light source, and connected to a remote video monitor for viewing and inspecting a surface area of an object.
Inspecting surfaces of three dimensional objects is important in many industries and fields. For example, in the aircraft industry, electrical and control wires and cables must be inspected on a regular basis for the detection of anomalies, flaws or imperfections in the surface of the wires or cables (such as stress cracks and abrasion chipping in the polymeric coatings or insulative layers of the wires and cables), which could lead to an unsafe condition. These inspections are normally performed by an inspector using a light and unaided eyes.
What is desired, however, is an apparatus and method for augmenting and assisting manual inspection procedures by providing lighting, image enlargement and recording capability. Preferably, the apparatus will include a hand-held imaging probe, a real-time image display, an image recorder, and a compact battery pack. The hand-held imaging probe will preferably be relatively small and lightweight, so that the probe can be placed anywhere or pushed up against anything an inspector would normally touch, or would point to within or just beyond arm's length. In addition, the probe will preferably be simple and inexpensive in design, and rugged and durable such that it can withstand rough handling during an inspection process without being damaged.